Reviews by Gobzilla:

More User Reviews:

This'll be only my second offering from Jester King. I enjoyed the other one (Das Wunderkind) quite a bit, so I'm looking forward to giving this one a go. RU-55 pours a murky, dark, stained-wood brown with some very, very tepid ruby hints. Completely opaque and capped with a soapy, gray-tinted head that quickly settles to a skin.

The aroma is nice, lively, and "pops" from the glass. Tart black cherries, sour apple skins, and plentiful grapes. Lots of vinous notes coming off with a big lean towards the oak barrel. Some vinegar surrounds the edges and keeps things interesting. Certainly the type of aroma that gets your saliva glands working right away. Funk is low, almost even nonexistent on the nose - the focus is certain on the tart, fruity elements.

One gulp and the vinous aspect of this beer leaps forward ahead of the pack - lots of wine-like grapes, wet oak, and puckering cherries. The tartness spikes quickly and settles on your taste buds, turning into a long-lasting sourness. The middle of the road introduces a very light tomato flavor, not exactly off-putting as it may sound, but rather pretty intriguing.

Vinegar notes are pretty profound and get even bigger with time. The finish contains a heavy dose of sour stone fruits, dry oak, and a very, very light, yeast-funk. Just a touch of corky mustiness, not quite in "barnyard" territory yet. It works, though, as the complexity of the sour profile are strong and interesting enough to stand up on their own. Thin-medium bodied, plenty of lively carbonation for a nice, crisp mouth feel that couples well with the dryness of the oak in the finish.

Again, I am more than pleasantly surprised by a Jester King offering. I don't know if I like this one as much as Das Wunderkind, but it might not be a fair comparison since they are slightly different styles. Either way, this beer was very enjoyable, and it has only reaffirmed by faith in this small-time Texas brewery. I pulled some similarities to RR Consecration out of RU-55. When you're getting compared to Russian River sours, you know you must be on the right track.